We take a fascinating genre turn for the podcast in April with my interview featuring Erin Jordan. The descriptors read “Old time Americana and Lounge” or “Retro-cabaret” and the songs have a fascinating blend of a New Orleans or Dixieland music flavor wrapped in colorful storytelling and fantastical character vignettes. This is some really interesting music, people!

Erin talks about the journey from a more “typical” singer/songwriter background to the development of her unique sound and the band Bakelite 78. They have a new album out called What the Moon Has Done and are currently playing shows throughout the Pacific Northwest. Look for them at a lounge or cabaret theater near you!

Erin w/Robert Rial - Bakelite 78

I also want to thank Erin for playing one of the songs off the new album live – a hauntingly seductive song called “Jim.” Who is this mysterious “Jim” you may ask? These are the types of questions that Erin’s songwriting and storytelling pulls you into and paints a vivid picture of the lives of interesting characters. It was a real treat to talk with Erin in depth and I hope you enjoy the discussion and music that goes along with it. Catch you next month!

Now please go have a listen to the podcast and enjoy!!

Chris has been hosting the podcast for Songwriters in Seattle since mid-2010. Also featured on www.songwritersinseattle.com

April, 2012
Retro-cabaret singer/songwriter Erin Jordan is interviewed by SiS Organizer Chris Klimecky. Erin shares songs from her new album with the band Bakelite 78, insight into her original sound and songwriting process, and performs a new song, “Jim.”

Click the play icon above to stream, or click here to download

Subscribe to the SiS Podcast on iTunes

Welcome the warmth of spring with a voice you can just melt into, my podcast guest this month, a wonderful singer – Rebekah Ann Curtis! I’m so glad we had the opportunity to talk and discuss her background, her songwriting, and all the other musical work she’s doing these days. Not only will you get to know her better, but she brought new, unreleased tracks! This is a real treat to hear the latest music she’s working on.

While she does already have one album out, Stay Close, the podcast features songs from her upcoming album, Lessons. The first is a great demonstration of that beautiful voice she has – it’s called “You and I Are We.” Second is a slightly rougher mix that is still a work in progress, but shows off an upbeat, playful energy and is called “It’s Magic To Me.” Lastly, she pulls out the acoustic guitar and plays a new song live in the studio, a groovy little tune called “What Goes Up.”

Rebekah will be touring with her band in support of the new album. She also has her own podcast, “The Ebb and Flow,” as well as acting as producer for her husband’s family’s podcast, “The Family Meeting,” both for NWCZ Radio. Make sure to visit Rebekah on Reverbnation and sign up on her mailing list so you can keep up with all the great work she’s doing. Thanks to Rebekah for making this another great podcast. Catch you next month!

Now please go have a listen to the podcast and enjoy!!

Chris has been hosting the podcast for Songwriters in Seattle since mid-2010. Also featured on www.songwritersinseattle.com

March, 2012
Singer/Songwriter Rebekah Ann Curtis is interviewed by SiS Organizer Chris Klimecky. Rebekah shares new, unreleased tracks along with stories about her songwriting and performing history. She performs “What Goes Up” live to finish the show.

Click the play icon above to stream, or click here to download

Subscribe to the SiS Podcast on iTunes

Hooray! It’s celebration time – This Journey is officially released! It’s been a huge endeavor of heart, soul, and effort – a dream project to have the time to realize my vision as best as I possibly could. In songwriting, performance, and production, this is a new high bar that I am thrilled to share with you! In celebration, I’ve posted the opening song “Arrival” for you to preview on Reverbnation (check the mini-player on my sidebar here, too).

Over the course of the next few months, I’ll be sharing stories about each song, lyrics, reviews from the press, and more, as news about the album’s release gets out to more and more people. Thank you so much for supporting me and sharing with your friends. This is a critical part of helping an independent artist promote their work, as I have neither the time nor the budget to do a significant marketing campaign on my own. I need rock fans telling other rock fans that This Journey is worth their time and money to check out!

The whole album is available for digital download from iTunes, Amazon, Reverbnation, here on my website, and CD Baby, with the high quality hard copy/CD available only from CD Baby. If initial feedback holds true, this will be a disc that becomes part of your permanent collection, not just a charity purchase from an indie artist that you pass to a friend after one listen. In fact, I’m so confident you’ll enjoy it, if you buy a hard copy/CD from CD Baby, I’ll give you a personal money back guarantee – if you really aren’t happy with it, contact me, send me the disc, and I’ll Paypal you the purchase price in return.

Thanks in advance for your support and I hope to hear your feedback (like the comments below) soon!

“This Journey is an amazing album. ‘Michael W. Smith meets Queensryche.’ I have spun it about five times now and it keeps getting better…an altruistic display of chops and songwriting prowess!! ~Raymond Hayden, Maurice the Fish Records

“Chris, the album is AMAZING! Listened to it the past 3 days in my car. AWESOME STUFF!” ~Jeff Ross, The Aquarium Radio Show (nwczradio.com)

“Wow, your new CD is MAGNIFICENT!!! I’ve spent the last three days listening to it non-stop, and I must say, you’ve outdone yourself this time. Really an amazing piece of work. I think you’ve grown considerably as a songwriter and a vocalist. Your guitar playing was always pretty smoking, and that’s on display here, too. This is definitely going to be one of my ‘summer soundtrack’ CDs over the next few months.” ~Aaron Cohen, Public Radio New York

It’s always fascinated me to hear what people think about my music, especially outside the generally protective realm of family, friends, and known fans. In any random and anonymous large group there is going to naturally be good, bad, and ugly responses. It’s important to me to try and get some sense how the songs from my new album, This Journey, would hold up against the mass of music releases the market is constantly assaulted with. Is it actually as good as I think it is? Specifically, which songs are getting the best responses and should thus be put forward to make a good first impression of the new release?

I used a professional music market research firm through Soundout.com to try and get some answers. For each song submitted, I not only received some good market comparison stats, but also the actual unedited comments from the 80+ listeners (who generally seem to have somewhat of a discerning ear and thoughtful comments, though it’s not clear if they are music industry related somehow or not – regardless, it’s completely anonymous).

So here are some of the best quotes that made me smile – maybe some time I’ll share the worst ones (and in some cases, just plain confusing ones) for a laugh. Got to let those roll off the thick skin, y’know…but for now I hope you’ll enjoy some of the warm and fuzzies along with me. Note: not all songs from the new album were submitted, and these were submitted separately over the course of many months, so it’s not just the same person/people all down the line at the same time.

Out of these, can you guess which song got the highest marks?

Arrival

- This song definitely has the making of a classic rock song. I love the elements of the guitar and the drums. I also love the fact that this song has a background chorus; a lot of newer songs don’t really have that anymore. This song is awesome.
- It is fantastic how much energy is in this song and how well it is transmitted. This is an engaging song and very fast paced, which would do a party a lot of good, because it would make the attendants dance and have a blast. I think that this is what I can call a real rock ‘n roll song, because I felt fantastic while listening to it.
- This song has an interesting 80′s vibe going on. Mixing Irish Punk with 80′s rock. The singer is really good. The instrumentalists are loose yet somehow remain in the pocket which I don’t think I’ve ever heard before. But it does sound really good this way. I like how it works out. It’s definitely a fun song with cool melodies. The chords and rhythms used are funky and have a ton of groove. Love it!
- This song is really good and the impact of this song is just really solid and the fast paced beat is very lively and energetic. The loud sound of the instruments is also working well in this song – it’s complementing the strong voice of the singer so well. The humming sound in the background really enhanced the main singer and I just loved that harmony. It’s really adding power to this song as well.
- Real rock n’ roll here! This has a great feeling to it. Solid musicianship on the instruments and this singer has a classic rock voice. Sounds like old stuff from the 1980s when music was much more entertaining and well constructed compared to music today. This song rocks! I really like this song and I am putting it into my playlist! Great vibe and awesome backup singers. It just really flows well!

Sunshine and Misery

- Strong intro with the song kicking in quickly. Good use of 2 guitars. Good guitar tone. Very good use of dynamics with guitars going from clean to distorted and with instruments dropping out and coming back in. Drums steady throughout. Good vocals and lyrics nice screams at times. Very good structure and arrangement.
- Really nice start to the song made me really intrigued what was going to happen next. The male lead vocal really had a smooth voice and had a wide and clear vocal range. The sound effects were epic. Listening to this song was a quite emotive song for me which music is meant to do. This piece was well composed and has that dramatic feeling it would get cooler and cooler. I applaud the vocals kudos.
- Dude, this seriously rocks. The guitar was crazy strong. The lyrics fit well with the music. I love the voice. It sounded like something I would listen to all the time with my friends. It has an awesome beat too. Thanks for sharing it with me. I’m putting it on my play-list right now!
- Groovy song here, very fascinating to listen to as this song stands alone because it is a unique melody and is a song that is like a rock song but is also relaxing at the same time. Great tune.

The Age Old Story

- I think that the song is amazing and really makes you want to have a good time. I think that this song is sexy. The vocals are good. The vocals are unique in that the song is folky but sexy and cool at the same time. The musical composition is really good because the song slows down at the perfect parts. The beginning and the ending is on point and strong. Overall, the vocalist has a good range and is strong and the musical chords are awesome.
- This is an amazing track. It starts out rocking, then makes me feel at peace. It sounds calm, joyful and enjoyable. I really do love the band, and the voice is awesome! I would buy this, I love it and hope to hear more.
- Instrumentals are spot on. The background harmonies blend well with the main singer’s vocals. The lyrics are very well written and go well with the melodies. The singer has an interesting sound and style. The flow of the song is interesting and moves along well. This song could potentially become a hit with continual play.
- I love a song that has a wide variety of transitions in delivery, dynamics and intensity….this song has it. The instrumental movements and vocals move this song as one. This is a clear indication of the level of talent and diversity of the songwriter, recording artist, and production quality in the studio. This is a very well put together piece of music. I can easily see this song being done in a packed arena, and people singing along. Watch the charts!

Lap of Luxury

- Ooh, the intro guitars really caught my attention. The first verse brought in the electric guitars and vocals, which actually weren’t bad. First good song I’ve heard all day. The lyrics are interesting and have a message. This is something I’d definitely consider buying to add to my music library.
- This is a great song and performance. The melody is strong and quite tuneful. The singer has an attractive vocal tone and the voice is very attractive too. The vocals come out really expressive and I just love the conviction in them. Instrumentally the song has this full and quite engaging accompaniment which complements the vocal flow really nicely. I think the song has a great commercial potential.
- Cool rock song fast paced and full of energy. I liked the powerful lyrics about taking someone or something down. This song is good because it is motivating and influential!
- Very uplifting and lyrical guitar stringed introduction on this track. The melody was natural and easy going with male vocals that rode with the flow of the music. It was an exceptional performance.
- There’s a flamenco feel to the intro of this song. It almost comes as a surprise that the song changes gears and turns into a rock song. The melodies are cool and the chord progression shows that these guys have paid their dues as far as musical theory goes. There’s a lot to enjoy on this song, and it’s the kind of song that can make many guitars players (and arrangers) envious. The backing harmonies sound great, the guitar melodies are great and there’s idea behind the songwriting also. It’s a rare thing that a song manages to pull all of these elements together. I could say that the song would appeal to fans of artists like Yngwie Malmsteen, but I could as easily say that this appeals to the fans of Queen or REO Speedwagon. You’re putting a lot of influences into one song and manage to make it into something of your own. The playing performances and singing are all handled with style. A great song and band.
- I loved this right from the start. It had this perfect catch and so much energy that made me want to get up and dance. The guys were holding strong and gave their best to charge this piece. It was excellent and so full in all the instrumentals.

Energy

- This song excited me while I listened to it. It was energizing because it kept a good beat and mood throughout the whole song. The song made sense and words weren’t just thrown in for the sake of just being catchy. I sure would listen to this song anytime and I would also recommend it to tons of my friends.
- Omg I love the instruments playing at the beginning a lot and I like the singer as well. The song itself is great actually and it filled all of my requirements. I am an addict when it comes to instrumental music and this one is no exception. Filled with energy and filled with spirit as the song itself says.
- This is a great track as it is bold and stands out in a positive way. I love the vocals as they are strong, sharp, and bold which also adds to the greatness of this track.
- The way this song is performed is almost like being at a concert outdoors because the music is created in a way that gives you this happy warm feeling inside yourself.
- The guitar at the start is brilliant, and when the drums kick in, makes it so much better – but when the vocalist starts, that is just pure brilliance. Definitely recommend this song to anyone into indie music – definitely a must listen! Love it, guys!
- I like this. I felt it was well arranged and well balanced. The performance quality was high and the music as a whole came across with style and conviction. The melody was tuneful and it’s the kind of tune that’s easy to recall. Overall, I think it has strong commercial qualities and could do rather well if given the chance.

Not Your Hero

- I LOVED the intro for sure! I also enjoyed the lyrics very much. “I am not your Hero” … is now stuck in my head, but it’s a good thing! I enjoy for lyrics to have a memorable line, as all good songs have. The music in the background was well made. I loved the work with the guitars, and the drums, it really made the song very well made!
- Amazing. I like this. Almost reminds me of the OLD Rise Against. I love the beat, perfect melody. Great vocals, I could listen to that voice for hours. I love the emotion put into the lyrics. I love the way the instrumental areas of the song tell a story, put that much more into the meaning. The guitarist is doing very well, percussion is great, overall I think it is great.
- I love how the electric guitar started the song. It matches well with the drums and bass. When the vocals kicked in, the song still had a good melody going. The lyrics also had a good tune to the words. The band is able to harmonize well with each other and the hit potential for this song seems relatively high. This song would appeal to the vast younger audiences. There is also a very rocking tune to it and has a nice rhythm to it.
- Wow intense rock song here very enjoyable to listen to. I think this song is good ’cause it has a lot of passion and energy. I think this band really knows how to play good rock music!
- Right off the bat this song delivers with a rocking guitar beat which is a perfect way to start a rock song in my personal opinion. The band continues to rock on as the track progresses which is very good and I like the lyrical as well as vocal style that the singer is using. It’s a wonderfully edgy and aggressive kicking song.
- This song has a really great story in the lyrics. The instruments such as the guitars are a bit heavy. I would class this as modern rock. It has that kinda Green Day feel. Good song all around with outstanding vocals. Hit.

Afterglow

- Strange and beautiful. It’s difficult to find a song like this, with this nice between all the instruments. The voice is special, never boring. At the moment of the guitar solo is spectacular, because there is all the energy of the song.
- What a great rock song this is. The lead singer sounds like Axl Rose to me which is cool. I think this band is good ’cause the band seems to play with all their heart and soul and they know how to make a rocking song!
- I love the music of this song. It is really pretty and engaging, the rhythm let me dance and I’ll listen to it many times in the future. The singer’s voice is strong and penetrating and the words are original.
- This song reminded me lots of old school rock songs, which I was a huge fan so I liked this track from the beginning especially the drums are making this melody and beat very effective and exceptional, The voice of the singer is matching and getting along perfectly with the instruments.
- This track has a great intro that grabs your attention right from the get go. The band performs together well, the song is well structured and remains compelling to the end. The singer has quite a unique voice which makes the track even more remarkable, I’m a big fan of this track and will happily promote the track to anyone I can.

First, here are some 3D estimation renderings of what the artwork will look like in the final package:

Approx. 3D rendering of the CD package cover shot

Opening up the tray reveals the back of the insert and the disc itself

A closer view of the disc and the image underneath the clear tray

The back of the jewel case

Here are some higher res images that should allow you to read the text on the back of the insert and the back of the jewel case:

Click for a closer look at the credits and thank you's

Click for a closer look at the back of the jewel case

More stories to come about the making of the album and next steps – stay tuned for exciting times ahead!

How are you going to spend your one extra day of February this year? Listening to the new Songwriters in Seattle podcast, I would suggest! My guest this month is Jabi Shriki, who brings a great combination of thoughtfulness and emotion to his music and our discussion. His new album, Puzzle Pieces, is out now and has a poetic depth to a pop/rock sound (think echo-y U2 guitars with a mellow tenor voice).

Jabi has a substantial catalog of recorded music and has been playing in bands for a while. For Puzzle Pieces, he played all the instruments and recorded it all himself, so a lot of effort went into it. He’s also a doctor (radiologist) and a book author, which all came into play with the concept of the album. It’s very interesting to hear him describe how he melds the different parts of his life in the expression of his music.

The cover art to Puzzle Pieces by Spiral at www.ToxicPretty.com

As a special treat, Jabi played/debuted a new song live in the studio, called “Mouse” – with just solo acoustic guitar and voice. A lovely song about your thoughts radiating out from the fly on the wall into the world. Make sure to visit http://jabi.us and connect with him so you can keep up on great new music like this. Thanks to Jabi for making this another great podcast. Catch you next month!

Now please go have a listen to the podcast and enjoy!!

Chris has been hosting the podcast for Songwriters in Seattle since mid-2010. Also featured on www.songwritersinseattle.com

February, 2012
Pop/Rock musician Jabi Shriki is interviewed by SiS Organizer Chris Klimecky. Jabi shares tracks from his new album and the philosphy behind them as well as a new tune played live.

Click the play icon above to stream, or click here to download

Subscribe to the SiS Podcast on iTunes

Welcome to the start of a new year of Songwriters in Seattle podcasts! If this first one is any indication, 2012 is going to be a great year for us, as our recent songwriting contest winner, Charlie Heinemann joins me in the studio for great music and discussion. Charlie has some unique songwriting insight and humor to go along with it!

After we get to know Charlie a little bit more at the beginning of the podcast, we dive right into his contest winning song, “LA (is Totally Awesome).” Those clever lyrics are no accident, and he talks of his study of rhetoric (which I didn’t realize was something one could study, but sure enough…) and other influences that drive his writing and storytelling. A little satirical humor/wordplay and unexpected phrasing really go a long way toward making Charlie’s songs so engaging and entertaining.

Charlie's album Disheartened with his band The Repeat Offenders

We then talk about his band The Repeat Offenders and their album Disheartened. The arrangements are very well done, complement the songs, groove nicely, and overall make the songs easy to listen to. This is an album that has appeal on so many levels. Genre-wise, we’re talking Americana, that blend of alt country, folk, bluegrass and acoustic rock that has become so popular these days. They do it well and with a great attitude. This is an exciting band to watch so please visit their website and connect with them so you can keep tabs in the future.

Lastly, Charlie plays us a new song live in the studio called “High Mountain to Climb.” It is always great to have these unique versions of songs for the podcast and I’m really appreciative of Charlie for making that happen. Please go have a listen to the podcast and enjoy!!